Maine Public Service customers’ electricity prices going up

AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine utility regulators announced Wednesday that electric prices for residential and commercial customers of Maine Public Service will be going up.

The Maine Public Utilities Commission said standard offer prices taking effect March 1, 2014, will be 16 percent higher, or 8.493 cents per kilowatt-hour for residential and small- to medium-sized business customers. That new price is fixed through October 2016.

The new standard offer price for large business customers will be 4.5 percent higher in the first year of the three-year period, or 11.112 cents per kilowatt-hour. Over the three-year term for which standard offer bids were accepted Wednesday, however, prices for large business customers will be 10 percent below the current level, according to the PUC.

The bids accepted Wednesday do not apply to customers who purchase their own electricity supply in the market, according to the PUC. About half of the load of medium-sized businesses and only about 5 percent of the load of large business customers receive standard offer service.